Hullo everyone,

After successfully rebuilding the carriage / apron assembly on my Hercus lathe I now need to attend to cleaning out the gearbox and the head stock.

I've had no problems taking apart the motor assembly or belt drive engagement. All is bagged and labelled and I am confident I can get all that back together fine. All side gears removed and cleaned.

Time has come to remove the head stock and my spider senses tell me it is possible to do something terrible with whatever retains it under the bed.

The head stock itself is remarkably clean and the spindle actually feels surprisingly good. I would just remove the gearbox to clean that but I can see that the cap screws for it wont come out without taking the head stock off first?

I would like to take the head stock off if possible without removing the spindle. Somebody with actual abilities seems to have set it up just right. I have not put a dial indicator on it yet but I would like to leave it alone for now.

The belt is just hanging on the spindle pulley and since I took the engagement spindle assembly to pieces it is free from that.

Now I took one bolt out from under the head stock underneath on the left hand side but I cannot quite figure out what I think is the other retainer under the bed on the right hand side and even with a mirror I cannot quite see it in the muck.

I've looked in the maintenance manual and while it shows lots about tools to remove the spindle it really does not seem to contain to much else of relevance to taking off head stock.

Very nice drawing of head stock but not a parts blown out diagram.

Now I did find one for a south bend and I am wondering if it is similar to the model shown on right.

On the right under the bed it seems to be a cap screw. I've successfully put a hex key in to that but my suspicion is that trying to undo that would be a terrible idea and is likely to ruin a casting.

Does it have a nut and washer on it that needs to come off? Is it a stud with a hex hole in the end?

I can see how it goes through the bed and up in to the bottom off the head stock.

I presume once whatever bit of cunning is holding it in to the bed is free the head stock will just lift off?

south_bend_headstock.jpg


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